What you wish for
by XhAlFlIfEX
Summary: How would life have changed for A.I. if one person had set them off of their courses?
1. Prologue

What You Wish For

- Prologue -

Melany, Texas 1991

Maxine Tripp sat on the wide steps infront of Melany Elementary school waiting for her older brother Matthew to come down the street from his school Melany High School to walk home with her. Max kicked her feet against the hard concrete of the stairs and looked up at the sky. A foreboding gray sky hung over the small town of only 3,000 people. Max had heard of High Schools with more people in it then Melany had.

Melany was a town built around nuclear plants. If you didnt work for a nuclear plant you had no business in Melany unless you were a small child or a house wife like Krista Tripp, Max's mother. The mother of four kids, Max, Emmaline, Matthew and Jodi. James Tripp worked for one of the nuclear plants in town, he was a hard worker and a good father.

Max decided it was time to go home and Matt wasnt there yet so she would walk home alone. She had done it before when Matt had been sick or Emmaline had been sick like she was that day. She began to walk down the street when a soft tingling started all over her skin. She looked on the ground, it had begun to rain. But it wasnt just ordinary rain it was acid rain. Max began to walk faster, normally it didnt get bad enough to burn you but she didnt want to be in it if it happened to.

Max's home was in sight when she felt the first real burn. She looked down at her arm as the large drop of acid rain hit her arm. She looked up in panic, instantly the house she had lived in her whole life seemed miles away. She began to run, but she tripped on a branch. A loud creeking informed Max that this was the end of the line, even at the fragile age of ten she knew what death was and this just happened to be her day.

"Max!" She heard Emmaline, her sister, yell from the front step of their home.

A zap of blue light told Max that Emmaline was using her powers to try and block whatever it was Max had no time to dodge. But it was too late for Emmaline's magical powers to help Max. The moment that blue Dodge pickup hit Max and smashed her into the house next to her it was over. The flames that spurted from the car and caught the house on fire sealed the deal.

The last thing that Max heard was the frightened cries of her sister and the world closed in around, everything was black and there was no white tunnel at the end for Maxine Kristen Tripp.


	2. Chapter 1

What You Wish For

Chapter 1

Los Angeles, 2003

Fred pushed herself against the door of the Magic Bullet many of Jasmines followers had her pinned between the door and the street. They didn't speak they just stared at her intently.

"Damn get out of my way!" Fred heard and saw someone pushing their way through the crowd.

Fred's first thought was that this was finally going to be the follower that killed her. But when she saw her it was obvious she was no follower. She had black hair that went down to the middle of her back and she wore a black AC/DC shirt with dark jeans. Her eyes were the brightest green Fred had ever seen.

"Tell me." She girl started. "That you are aware there is a maggot face running this town."

"You see it too!?" Fred cried all too happily.

"I assumed that LA was going insane. Now I see it has." She said standing infront of Fred. "Let's get inside."

Fred turned and pushed the door open. The two girls entered the store and within a minute the door was opening again. The girl looked up at Fred and told her to get behind the counter.

"Max." She heard behind her. "I love you Max."

"Shut up Jasmine." Max said turning to her.

She had brought with her Angel, Connor, Gunn and Wes. Max stood her ground. She was the only thing that kept them from tearing Fred into small pieces. She put her hand behind her back and gave Fred the thumbs up.

A shot was fired and a bullet glided past Max's head and hit Jasmines shoulder then exited and went into Angel's shoulder. Ma was ready for him, he charged on them.

Max backed against the counter blocking Angel from Fred. He attempted to punch her and she grabbed him then threw him across the room. He hit the ground but jumped back up.

"Look at her Angel!" Fred cried across the room as Max went behind the counter to Fred.

Angel looked at Jasmine and his expression told the girls that he had seen the same thing.

"He's been infected Connor." Jasmine said to him. "He's dead to us."

Connor went at Angel. Max jumped up onto the counter and then down doing a front flip and landing infront of Jasmine.

"You are no match for me Maxine." Jasmine said to her.

"Well damn. Thought I was." She said sarcastically.

She punched Jasmine hard in the face making her nose bleed. She had the blood all over her hand when she ran to Gunn and pulled a knife out of her boot. She slashed him across the hand then put her hand on his.

"Come children!" She yelled turning from them.

"You got him!" Fred cried. "Gunn look at her."

But they were already out of the door. Angel leaned heavily against the counter and looked from Fred to Max and back to Fred.

"Who are you?" He asked Max.

"Max." She said looking at the door.

"Max?" Angel asked her.

"Tripp." She replied.

"Tripp?" Fred said softly. "Tripp as in the only survivor of the Melany incident?"

Max looked at Fred and then back at the door. She hated thinking about those days, she hadn't been the only survivor. Just the only one dumb enough to stick around after the whole place had gone up in flames.

"Melany incident?" Angel asked.

"A town in Texas. Just exploded, one little girl survived. I followed your paper trail after that... explosion after explosion that you survived through." Fred said softly.

"Well when you are fireproof it makes things like that easier. Now why are we still in here?" Max asked them.

"I don't know." Angel said looking at the people gathered around the door.

"Let's get out of here then decide what we are going to do." Fred said as they took the back way out.

"See mixing Jasmines blood with our blood is how we can see her true face." Fred said nodding then she turned to Max. "Why can you see her true face?"

"I saw her on TV once and she was just there all maggoty and such." Max said nodding. "But a few months ago I got into a fight with some pregnant lady who ended up being Jasmines mom or whatever. Blood was spilled guess she's got the same blood."

Fred's eyes bulged. "Cordy! Of course, they have the same blood obviously."

The three of them made their way down an alley then across a not so busy street. Before they knew it they were standing in the back of the Hyperion hotel. They began to climb, they finally reached a fire escape and made their way up to a window.

"This is Cordy's room." Fred explained to Max.

They crawled into the room and crossed it. Max and Fred stood back as Angel kissed Cordy's forehead said a few words that were inaudible then after cutting Cordy's wrist drained some of her blood into a small bowl. They were about to leave when Lorne came into the room. Angel crossed the room and put his hand over Lorne's mouth.

Max took the bowl and her knife and cut Lorne's wrist lightly then spread a small amount of Cordy's blood on his wrist.

"Now what?" Max asked Angel as the whole gang minus Connor sat in the sewers.

Max had turned into a major ally and Angel didn't want to lose her now that they were nearing what could only end up as a final battle. She looked up at Angel her bright green eyes troubled.

"Oh." Fred said suddenly. "Cordy... I almost forgot about her."

"Well you better do just that." Angel said to her. "Forget about her. This is not the time to let your heart get in the way."

They walked for a few minutes in silence. There was little to talk about besides the end of the world and all that.

"I feel empty." Lorne said to them out of nowhere.

"I miss that full feeling, you know. That everything was good and I was at peace." Gun said nodding.

"I never had it." Max said looking behind her making sure no one was following them.

"Where did you come from?" Gunn asked Max. "I mean you save Fred's ass then you come to the rescue with us when it looks like there's no way we can get out of it alive."

"I felt bad for Fred. Alone, no friends." Max said looking at Gunn.

"And you stayed why?" Gunn asked her rudely.

"Because we need her." Angel said to Gunn.

Suddenly Angel and Wes fell through the floor. Max knelt next to floor it was obviously a trap. Gunn pulled Wes out of the hole and before Max could pull Angel out a large stick was thrust past her and towards Angel. Max grabbed the stick and pulled it out of the boys hands.

She snapped it in half and threw it across the other side of the sewer as Angel jumped up behind her landing hard on the ground behind her.

A few more teens came around them all holding weapons. Max looked at Fred who was standing rigidly her hands together.

"These guys aren't under Jasmines control." Angel said to them looking around.

"They are in a sewer. Duh Angel." Max said looking at them. "Sorry kid."

They finally followed the teens to a secured location where it looks like they had been living for a while. The kid that Max had stolen the stick from followed a rigid Angel around as Angel asked how secure the place really was.

"Is the world ending?" Max heard and looked at the young girl who asked the question.

"Not if we have anything to say about it." Wes said looking at Max who nodded at him.

"Are all of you demon hunters?" Matthew, the little boy asked them.

"We are." Fred said.

"I'm not." Max said wondering to the chain link fence.

Wes followed her and stood behind her. He put his hand on her back and looked at her. She turned to him her eyes slightly misted.

"So sue me." She said looking back out. "I know when this is all over I just get to go back to living in sewers and fighting the scum of the earth alone hoping one day one of them may have the power to kill me."

"You don't have to go back to that." Angel said behind them. "You can stay with us."

"Yeah like you really want someone like me hanging around." She said nodding. "Listen, let's go kill that demon thing."

"Max." Wes said as she pulled the little chain link door open almost breaking it.

They followed Randall to the place where Tommy was attacked. Randall was suddenly sucked up a shaft. Angel flew up the shaft after him and Randall's wounded body fell back down. The young girl went to him as Angel made his vamp face.

"Matthew!" The girl yelled as the boy ran out of the tunnels.

Fred screamed as an arm went around her. Gunn cut it off and Fred fell onto him her face lit with fear.

"Where's Wes?" Angel yelled over the chaos.

"We lost him!?" Gunn cried out.

"I'll find him." Max said her eyes locking with Angels before she turned and sprinted down the corridor.

Max listened closely. If she tried hard enough she could hear things above them so it probably wouldn't be that hard to find Wes. She listened closely pushing herself against the floor trying to hear through the vibrations. Finally she picked up a light skittering and then the sound of something slamming hard against a wall. Max pushed herself off of the floor and sprinted in the direction of the loud thud.

She reached a fork in the sewer her mind racing she took the right side. She ran as fast as she could and to her dismay she had reached a dead end. She slammed her hand against the wall and then turned back around.

"Well Wes, don't die yet." She mumbled as she ran back to the fork.

She took the left side, which ended up being the right road to take. She reached the top of landing which over looked Wesley and a way to many legged demon thing who had a vampire pinned to the wall his intestines on the outside.

She jumped off of the landing and hit the ground hard her boots thudding on the ground. She smiled as the demon came at her. She pulled her hands together right below her chin then threw them out and to Wesley's amazement they became two fiery images her hand barely visible through the flames.

Angel reached the door below a few seconds later to see Max do a windmill kick kicking the demon in the face twice before her feet landed back on the ground. As it swung at her with one of its pointy legs she grabbed it with her hands catching it on fire. It pulled its legs free slicing open both of her hands.

In pure anger of being sliced open Max began to glow. No, Angel realized, she wasn't glowing. She was on fire. Angel swooped across the room and knocked Wesley down on the ground. Wesley grabbed the orb before he hit the ground and in a millisecond an explosion of fire went through the room.

A shrill shriek mixed with clicking noises told Angel that the demon had not lived through the explosion. Angel looked up as the fire cleared. He was in shock, the walls were unmarked and there was no smoke. Max stood in the middle of the room the only mark on her was her bleeding hands.

"Talk about skeletons in the closet." Angel said pushing himself up and offering his hand to Wes.

"Sorry. I got mad. By the time it happened I was able to control it. So it wouldn't have hurt you had you been standing." Max said turning to them her eyes glowing a brighter green then ever.

"You know." Angel said looking at her. "Now that we know that we can't get let you go."

"Welcome to Angel Investigations." Wes said looking down at the orb in his hand.

"What is that?" Max asked him.

"I think it's a key to get into the world that Jasmine ruled for a millennia." Wes answered her looking down at the orb in his hand.

"How do you use it?" Angel asked him.

"I don't know." Wes said looking from Angel to Max.

Wesley began to mumble as Gunn, Fred and Lorne ran into the room and slammed the door behind them shoving their bodies against the door. The three of them looked at the other three curiously. Banging began on the door and all of them besides Wes pushed their weight against the door keeping it closed.

Suddenly from behind them a portal opened from the small orb. Wes glowed for a second.

"You guys go. I can hold this." Angel yelled over the banging.

"No Angel. Only you can go through it." Wes cried.

"Go Angel!" Max yelled. "We can take these guys."

"Yeah we can." Gunn yelled.

Angel nodded solemnly and headed through the portal, Wes through him the orb then the five of them stepped back from the door as the portal closed. It banged down to the ground and they all looked up at the armed guard that Connor had brought with him.


	3. Chapter 2

What you wish for

Chapter 2

"Get that one in a metal box." Jasmine said to Connor as she looked at Max.

"Why?" Connor asked her.

"Because, I said so Connor." Jasmine said smiling at Connor.

"Okay." He said grabbing Max by the arm.

"NO!" Fred cried out.

"It's okay Fred." Max said looking at them.

"Oh doll face." Lorne said sadly.

Connor shoved her out of the room and down the hall. He put her in the elevator as not too attracted attention from the media.

"So what do you do anyway?" Connor asked her.

"I can light this damn elevator up like a Christmas tree." Max said rudely.

"Then why don't you?" He asked her.

"I have spent my sad life saving the innocent. And although you aren't a good person that doesn't give me the right to kill you." Max said looking at their reflections in the shiny doors.

The doors slid open and he pushed her out and into a door right across the hall. She fell down a flight of stairs and hit her back on a cold stone floor. Connor followed her down the stairs and kicked her hard making her fly into the metal cage. He slammed the door shut and left the basement.

Max pushed herself up and stared at the wall across the room. Se could melt metal she knew it but what if she couldn't control that much fire? She knew it could turn deadly and far to many people were above her to risk it.

A good twenty minutes later Connor came back down the stairs with the rest of the group and shoved them into the cage with Max who was nursing a leg wound in the corner. She stood as they were pushed into the cage.

"Welcome to my corner of heaven." Max said looking at them.

"More like hell." Gunn said looking at her.

"Yeah well what can you do." She said looking at them all. "Well, I have an idea..."

She walked to the front of the cage and put her hand on the lock. A flame erupted from her hand and began to engulf the lock in a small flame. She cringed in pain as the metal began to melt to her hand. She cried out as the cage gate swung open. A large red burn on her hand indicated that melting metal had its prices.

She fell to her knees and held her useless hand to her chest. Wesley grabbed her and pulled her into his arms. He carried her out of the basement as screams came from above them. They sprinted up the stairs to see people running for their lives from the hotel and Angel standing in the mess of them holding a demon head.

"If this wasn't how normally my days went I would be freaked out to see a girl melt metal and to see a vampire holding a dead demon head and some freak standing on the stairs." Gunn said shaking his head.

"Are you okay?" Fred asked her.

"I'm okay." She said jumping out of Wes's arms as Angel left the hotel.

She followed him out the door without a word to the others. She was shocked to find what she did, the streets in chaos. Cars parked in the middle of the road. People just wandering down the streets in fear most likely of what tomorrow would be like without Jasmine in it.

Max looked around. She remembered something like this in China. A man had come to a small city and made the whole place love him with his magical powers. An ancient warrior who said no one else could see what he was but him had called in Max. Although the sorcerer had no maggoty face he was a wolf in sheep's skin, ready to devour the entire city.

She had spent the majority of her life fighting what evil could cross her path but the aftermath was what always got her. The suffering that came afterwards, people always died when there was something big at stake. After death it was time to mourn. And that's what LA was planning on doing, mourning the loss of their goddess.

"Its scary isn't it." Angel said coming up on the side her. "The fear. The loss."

"You got to feel the love of it all. They say its better to have loved and lost then to never have loved at all. What do you do when no one has ever loved you? Or you have never loved anyone to which you could lose?" Max replied her mind fixated on the pain she felt inside, not her hand.

"I don't know." Angel said to her.

They began to walk down the street together. Angel took her hand in his and they walked together hand in hand. One who had lost something and one who had nothing to lose.

The two walked into the Hyperion hotel. After Angel explained what had happened with Connor and Jasmine the room was silent.

"I'm just afraid he might do something."

"Like end world peace." He turned to see Lilah Morgan walk into the lobby. "Well you already took care of that. Congratulations."

The whole of them listened intently as Lilah dished them something they never would have expected. Even Max, someone who was not originally from LA knew who Wolfram and Hart was and now Lilah was offering the LA branch of the firm up to them on a silver platter. They were all stunned, obviously.

"There is going to be a limo here at dawn to give you the grand tour." Lilah turned before she left the hotel. "That means you too Max. Your destiny is intertwined with theirs from now on."

Lilah left the hotel and they all began to talk at once. About taking the job then decided to split up in an attempt to find Connor instead of deciding to go to Wolfram and Hart or not.

"Okay..." Max said as Lorne came into the hotel later.

"Nothing." Lorne said slightly discouraged.

"We will find him." Angel said pacing the large lobby.

"Angel..." Gunn said to him. "Maybe if we..."

"If we what?" Angel barked stopping dead in his tracks. "Used Wolfram and Hart? You five can make the decision to get in that limo in the morning for yourselves. But if you do, before the ride is even over you will be corrupt."

He turned then and stalked out of the hotel his face lit with anger. The others looked around then agreed to see each other the next day. It had been a long day.

Max left the hotel and made her way to an all night diner. She was hungry and homeless but she had some money. So until she had better things to do she sat at one of the shiny seated booths and opened over of the laminated menus. She pulled her black framed glasses out of her pocket and put them on so she could read the menu.

She let out a sigh, if she worked for Wolfram and Hart she wouldn't have to eat at a diner in the middle of the night. She wouldn't have to walk around all night instead of sleeping because she would have to accept the fact that she was homeless if she slept on the ground.

"May I take your order?" Max looked up and immediately felt stupid for feeling bad for herself. The waitress couldn't have been more then sixteen and she looked as if it had been a few days since she had showered.

"I'll have a burger and a coke." She said closing her menu and handing it to the girl. "Thank you." The girl smiled at her and turned away.

Max looked down at the table and at her own reflection. Her black hair was soft and clean, she had showered at the YMCA down the street before she had run into Fred. Her hair hadn't always been black. After the accident it had turned black, her eyes had gone from a mud brown to a bright green. She had become a completely different person after that crash then what she probably would have turned out to be.

She probably would have gone to college, gotten married and had a few kids. But now it looked like kids were out of the question. She didn't dare pass this on to someone else if she could help it.

"So." She looked up to see Angel's son, Connor sit down in the booth with her.

"You hungry?" She asked him immediately.

"Yes." He said to her. "I don't have any money."

"I do." Max said, she knew it would hit her hard in the pocket book but she had enough.

She flagged down the waitress and made it a double. Connor stared down at his own reflection in the shiny table. He stared as if he was questioning his own existence, like there was nothing left in the world.

"I didn't love her like everyone else did." Connor said as the waitress set two glasses of coke infront of them.

"You loved her as a father. Like Angel loves you." Max said to him.

He didn't say anything he just nodded solemnly he looked up at her his eyes boring into hers. She understood him, breed from impossibilities. Having a destiny that he didn't want to be a part of.

"Why do I feel like you understand me better then I do?" He asked her.

"I don't. Your just confused, I understand you but you will come to a place in your life where you understand yourself perfectly. Maybe not today or tomorrow but someday. I promise." Max said to him.

"Do you understand yourself?" Her asked her.

"No." She said as the waitress set the two burgers infront of them.

They ate and Max paid. Then they left the diner and walked out onto the streets that were still somewhat reeling from the chaos.

"Jasmine said you don't have any family. And that you live on the streets." Connor said to her as they walked toward the Hyperion hotel.

"I do have family. But they don't speak to me. Connor," She paused and stopped then turned to him. "You have family, a family that wants you. Fred, Gunn, Wes, Lorne, Angel, they all want you and love you."

"And you?" Connor asked her.

"I want a family Connor. I want to be part of this family but with my special circumstances I doubt I will." She began to walk again. "You need to go home Connor. With your father."

Connor turned and fled down the street in the opposite way. Max stood in the middle of the street staring at his retreating figure. She looked up at the sky, the sun was going to set soon and she was just a few blocks from the Hyperion.

She walked the rest of the way to find the A.I. team standing infront of the Hyperion near the black limo parked outside.

"I thought you of all people wouldn't come. Morals and all." Gunn said to Max as she stepped onto the curb her hands in her dark denim jeans.

"Girls gotta eat." Max said deciding in her head to not tell Angel about Connor yet.

"I'm glad you did come." Fred said smiling at her.

"Thanks Fred." Max said to her as Angel walked up.

Angel got in the limo, Gunn and Wes behind him then Fred got in and after her Max got in and closed her door.

"Does that have to be so loud Lorne?" Wes asked him.

Max was silent the whole ride to Wolfram and Hart. She just stared out the window. It was surreal, Maxine Tripp was in a limo. That never would have happened without these people and now she didn't know what to do.

They reached the evil law firm and stuck together until they got inside. Lilah was standing in the main lobby with six people standing behind her and her hands clasped infront of her with a cruel smile on her pretty face.

"Good morning Mr. Angel." A man said walking past Angel.

"Oh no!" Max said nearly doubling over with laughter.

"There is no way this is gonna go well." Angel said shaking his head.

"Good morning Mr. Angel."

"Good morning Mr. Angel."

"Good morning Mr. Angel."

"Well, you've all made it. What a shock." Lilah said to them. "We've got a lot of ground to cover, so best we get started. Let me introduce you to your guides."

"Guides?" Angel asked her narrowing his eyes.

"Yes there are six of you, six guides. Six different areas of expertise, specific interests. Do I have to explain everything to you Angel?" Lilah said shaking her head.

"Divide and conquer." Angel said shaking his head.

"Now Angel, if we wanted to hut you we would have the limo blown up." Lilah said looking around at them.

"She's right Angel." Lorne said to them.

"What's with the glasses?" Gunn asked Max.

"Oh." Max said touching her face. "Can't read without em. Side effect."

"If you don't trust us you can be armed." Lilah said as a man rolled a full cart of weapons into the lobby.

Fred grabbed a gun and cocked it then nodded with a polite smile on her face. Lilah motioned for the rest of them. They all shook their heads.

"Okay let's get this show on the road." Lilah said smiling. "Preston, will be your guide, Lorne."

A short little guy walked to Lorne shook his hand and showed him a long list of clientele in the entertainment division.

An older, more distinguished man stepped up. Lilah introduced him to Wesley as Rutherford Circe. He invited Wesley to follow him and without a word but with a quick glance at the rest of the group he followed.

"Charles Gunn, this is Lacey Shepard." Lilah said to Gunn about the beautiful African-American woman Gunn had been eyeing.

Gunn scurried off with the woman. A young man in a lab coat stepped up and Lilah introduced him as Knox. They left after an awkward introduction.

"Max Tripp, this is Jason Heatherford." Lilah said introducing a young attractive man with dark spiked hair who smiled at her.

"Angel." Max said looking at him.

He nodded and she followed the young man. They walked up a flight of stairs then down the hall. Max noticed the way people looked at her. Her AC/DC shirt and dark jeans probably made people a little nervous. And the fact that the whole place probably already knew how powerful she was.

"So who are you?" Max asked Jason.

"I manage the special projects division." Jason said smiling at her.

"Whoa a whole division lucky you." Max said as they walked down the hall.

"I manage it. You're the head of it." Jason said turning down a large hall.

A sign on the hall said Special Projects. The hall was large and well lit, at the end of the hall was a large door where they were heading. The nameplate on the door read Maxine Tripp on it. Max stopped looking at the door.

"I know this is happening really fast." Jason said to her. "But it will be okay."

"Yeah thanks I'm not seven." Max said as they walked to the office.

Jason pushed the door open and inside there was a large desk with a huge desk chair behind it. The office had ceiling to floor mirrors in it and it had its own mini bar. Max shook her head and knew at that moment that was totally the job for her.

After listening to Max explain the gist of the special projects area she left the office and went back down to the lobby. The group was standing there waiting for her she smiled at them.

"It's tempting." She said coming to the group.

"I want it." Gunn said to them.

"So do i." Lorne said smiling at them.

"I must say I do as well." Wes said smiling.

"So what are we doing?" Fred asked Angel as he came down into the lobby with them.

"We're taking it." Angel said to them.


	4. Chapter 3

What you wish for

Chapter 3

The soft thudding of black vans echoed in the parking lot as Max Tripp walked to her car. She was the only one still at Wolfram and Hart at 2 in the morning besides Lorne who seemed to pepped up to sit down. She didnt look anything like the other people who worked at the evil lawfirm. She wore a plain black short sleeved shirt and jeans with her black vans. She had gotten her hair cut after she had taken the job decideing that she needed a little oomph so to speak. She had gotten her bangs cut stylishly across her forehead and let her hair grow out long to end it long loopy curls. But since it was 2am and she was alone she had put it up in a ponytail and not been afraid to put on her glasses like a nerd.

She reached her car and suddenly a hand touched her. She spun around quickly her hand gliding through Spike. He stood there smiling at her while she smirked. She turned back to her car pulling her keys out of her pocket.

"Whats your deal? You are so tightly wound that you could pop a bloody spring." Spike said behind her.

"Yeah well its a tough thing. Running the special; projects division of an evil lawfirm. Im lucky i left when i did. I may start blending in with the furniture." She said cracking a small smile at her lame joke.

"See thats a pretty smile now aint it?" Spike said to her.

"Its hard, you know." She said looking down at her feet. "Finding all the happiness and such."

"You just got..." Spike said softly.

He raised his hand shakily and held it close to her face. He let it lay softly on her skin, his hand was cool to the touch.

"Want it bad enough..." He said barely above a whisper.

"Hey!" They both turned to see Jason walking their way. "Some guys here to see you. Vampire, big deal."

"Gotta go." She said stuffing her keys back in the pocket of her pants and turning to leave.

Max spent the rest of the night in the office trying to figure out a way to work with the vampire. He had a kid before he was sired and she was just turned into a slayer by Buffy's new fangled plan. Angel pointed all Slayers in her direction, he seemed to be slightly terrified of it. Max's latest project, the Pakstrifi case was slowly underway. Pakstrifi was on death row for something his identical evil twin had done. Angel had put it in Max's lap, to crack the case and give Gunn a way to defend Pakstrifi in court.

"Personally," She said walking into the Angel's office the next morning. She kept a change of clothes at the office and she had showered in the science wing, now she was in a red short sleeved shirt, jeans and red converse. "I think hes at fault because its his evil twin."

Angel smiled at her and stood pushing his chair back. She grinned back as he went to the small mini fridge he had in his office. He opened the fridge and pulled out a small bottle of milk that you could only find at the doughtnut places. He tossed the milk and she caught it in her hand. It was frosty from being in the fridge overnight.

"Oh Angel. You know me too well." She said pulling off the strip around the top of the bottle.

"Spike get out of my office." Angel said as Spike came through the door.

"I want my own office. Im like a member of the A team." Spike said nodding to Max.

"No." Angel said crossing the room as Harmony came in.

"Package for Angel." She said smiling at Spike.

Angel took the package and ripped the top off. A swirl of white light flashed momentarily then went away. Max raised an eyebrow then turned to leave. She pulled the door open left the office and shut it behind her as the phones began to ring all at once.

Max pushed her office door open to find Jason bent over his chair with his head in his hands. She knelt next to him and he woke slowly.

"Hey..." He said smiling at her.

"Go home Jason. Go to sleep." She said smiling.

"Nah I'm good." He said nodding.

"If you insist." She said going back behind her desk. "Why is my phone ringing?"

"I donno boss." He said standing and stretching.

There was a soft tapping on her office door and she motioned for Jason to get it as she tried to unplug the phone. She crawled on the floor then when the door opened she looked up. A young woman stood infront of her desk, hair down to her back that was a light brown. Max stood and lost her balance falling back over. She stared up at the ceiling for a moment as the door was pushed open violently causing the girl to jump forward.

"MAX!" Spike yelled. "Max? Wheres Max?"

"Shes gone." Jason said as Max tried to untangle herself from the cords on the ground.

"Damn." Spike said turning and leaving.

"Thanks Jason, he could have had something important to say." Max said pulling her leg out and standing. "Hi. Can I help you?"

"Yes my name is Sarah." She said coming to the desk. "Your boss said I should come to you."

"If he said it then it must be true." She said smiling at the girl.

"Well..." She looked Max up and down. "You dont look like a lawyer."

"Im not." She said nodding her head. "I just run this area. My names Max Tripp."

"Sarah..." She said nervously. "Uhm well my brother, hes gone evil and I want you to kill him."

Max shifted nervously and eyed the girl. She was wearing a plain cotton dress, she looked as if she had just stepped out of the country. She had probably traveled a good deal to get there and Max could tell by the look in her eyes she wasnt kiding.

"Your brother?" Jason asked her.

Max heard a loud shriek and she held her hand up to the girl. She jogged out of the office to see a man clad in all black his hands outspread and what looked like botls of electric energy shooting from his hands. Angel laid on the ground far from him and Max had the advantage she had his back. Fred came from the science wing from the stairs seeing this she shot her look to Max who shrugged.

Max looked above her. There was a ledge about ten feet above her if she could get up there she would have enough leverage.

"MAX!" Fred cried.

She looked up in enough time to see the bolts coming at her. As in slow motion Max jumped up shoving her foot off of the side of the wall and coming topling down on the hooded man. He growled practically at her and with incredible force shoved her off of him. She hit the wall behind her hard with a thud of pain shooting up her back. She landed on the ground with a groan.

The man charged at her and she saw now the stupid Scream mask he had on his face, that he could have gotten anywhere for like ninty cents at any party store.

"Max!" Gunn yelled. "Get up!"

Max pushed herself up with a twist as the hooded man came at her. Her feet shot out underneath him and made him fall to the ground. He grabbed her leg and with all of his force he began to shock her. She cried out in pain as she felt her flesh boiling. Now she knew, you could have your leg burned off even if you were invincible.

She found her strength and shoved her feet out kicking him in the stomach. She jumped up her leg hurting but her mind focused. She kicked her leg out as it advanced on her and she got him in the face. Angel jumped up and grabbed the guy from behind holding him still.

Max grabbed tha mask on his face and pulled it off. She dropped the mask to the ground and stared at the familiar face. He looked back her his brown eyes that had once matched hers identically.

"Matthew?"

She felt the sting of pain from behind her. Angel's eyes bulged a spear came through Max's stomach and was pulled out just as quickly. Max's eyes flashed fear at Angel and she fell to the ground with a sick groan of pain. Angel fell to the ground on his knees as Spike and Harmony came bareling into the room. Spike stood stunned unable to move as blood poured out of Max's gaping wound.

She took a deep rattling breath as Angel knelt over her. She touched his face blood covering her small hand. She forced the smallest smile possible and she closed her eyes.

"I always looov-" Her head fell to the side.

Angel cradeled her body in his arms and pressed his face to hers tears running down his face. Eve stood above them, the room was silent, the girl in the cotton dress that had used Max and then stabbed her had left with the electric shock man. Fred let out a cry and crumbled to the floor. Wes knelt next to her and wrapped his arms around her. Fred buried her face in his shirt. Lorne leaned against the wall and covered his face. Gunn stood ultimatly stunned as Spike and Harmony crossed the room. Spike's face twisted in torment and he fled the evil law firm his heart, if had had one breaking the same way Angel's was.


	5. Chapter 4

What you wish for

Chapter 4

Angel sat in his office alone staring at the wall. It was past midnight but he wasnt the only one still there. Fred, Wesley, Gunn and Lorne had followed his example and were now working to alleviate the pain they felt at the loss of Max. But Angel wasnt working, his mind was elsewhere and it wasnt possible to put it back on work. He kept thinking about Max, the way she would laugh, walk, talk, sing... How she smelled like flowers in the morning. He hadnt noticed what he had had right infront of him until she was gone.

"Hey boss." Lorne said coming into the room.

He wasnt alone, Fred, Wesley and Gunn followed him. Eve stood against the door jam behind them. Althought Eve was obviously evil she still seemed to have a heart and the loss of Max had shaken up the small group and thrown it out of whack which also effected Eve.

"Hey guys." Angel said pushing himself up.

"Angel theres something going down." Eve said standing upright. "It could actually be a good thing."

"What is it?" Angel asked her annoyance written all over him.

"They might give her back... So to speak." Eve said to him.

"What?" Angel asked leaning his hands onto his desk.

"They want her back..." Eve said looking from the floor to Angel. "She plays a major part in the apocolypse and they need her back. But there is a clause... She gets the visions."

"Back? If shes in heaven they cant get her back..." Angel caught it before the gang all began to look at one another.

The silence in the office was defening, Angel hated it when he was the last person to be informed about something. He pushed his chair back and walked around the desk as Harmony came into the office.

"Where is she?" Angel asked them.

The answer was people looking down at the ground and endless silence.

"Harmony, where is Max?" Angel asked her.

"Oh I know this!" Harmony said squinting her eyes as if she where thinking really hard. "Oh!" She popped her eyes open and seemed as if she were going to jump. "That hell dimension. The one where she doesnt age but they go through like a year in a couple of minutes!"

Angel looked at the group and shook his head. They had kept something like this from him, she had been in there for three days that could be twenty or thirty years. He closed his eyes then snapped them open again, this time he was greeted by another familiar face that he didnt even want to see.

"Lindsey?" He said looking at him.

"I had this big elaborate plan to ruin all of your lives but I heard about this and I decided this might be a better waste of my time." Lindsey said looking at Angel.

Angel took him in, his hair had grown and he had symbols or tattoos on his chest which was shown by the opening in the top of his shirt.

"Angel it was so ify we didnt want to bring your hopes up when we werent sure." Fred said to him.

Angel turned his head to Fred. "Are you trying to spare me Fred? Bring her back."

"Its going to be hard Angel. Its only been done three times in the history of well ever." Gunn said to Angel. "Once it sliced the person in half and the other two times the two people never aged again, lived forever."

"Its better then her being in a hell dimension." Angel said crossing his arms. "I'll take it."

"Well..." Lindsey said smiling. "We already did it."

----

Black boots slammed down on the pavement in a dark alley. Max Tripp stood in the dark alley head to toe in black. Black leather pants with a black belt and a large silver buckle on it. A black short sleeve t-shirt and her pitch black hair down in wavy locks falling all over her back.

She was covered in weapons. She had a large gun attached to her belt buckle and on her right arm she had a knife attached to a black three belted cuff that went around her hand, the knife shot out when she threw her hand hard. In her left hand she had a cross bow, attached by a strap that went around her chest and ended in a small holder on her back were a dozen arrows.

Angel stood at the end of the alley his eyes on her. She had retreated into the core of who she had been before Wolfram and Hart. Lindsey had warned him about her, that she had become something a little more super then natural. She shook her hair back.

She had followed a vampire into the alley and she knew that he was still there. She turned abruptly and kicked her foot up. Angel watched as a stake emerged from the end of her shoe and she kicked into the darkness. With a shriek and a puff of smoke she had dusted a vampire in the dark once again.

She turned and looked down the alley at Angel. He looked back at her his hands in the pockets of his nice suit. She sauntered down the alley towards him. Her eyes glowing a soft green obviously meaning she had just caught something on fire somewhere.

"Stalking is a federal offense." Max said as she swept past Angel.

He grabbed her arm. She spun around throwing her hand off, he saw it then. The pain in her eyes. The ultimate hurt of being stuck in a hell dimension for that long and Angel not coming for her. She turned back aware that he had caught on to her and headed down the alley.

"I felt the same way Max." He said to her back.

"I didnt feel anything." Max called back as she walked out onto the street.

The next morning, Angel found himself in his chair in his office staring at the wall while the rest of the team argued over Eve, weither or not she was against them or nothing at all. Harmony entered the room obviously needing to speak to Angel about something very important.

"Hey boss. We have a problem, this girl just went all loony and broke out of the nut house." Harmony said to Angel putting her hands on her hips.

"Thats not our thing Harm." Angel said to her.

"Well shes kinda like all exorcisty." Harmony paused then raised her hands up. "Ya know?"

"She's possessed?" Angel asked her.

"Yeah." Harmony said turning and leaving as if it werent important anymore.

"We can get a team on it." Wesley said as the doors opened and Harmony backed against the wall.

Max walked into the office her long hair behind her as she waltzed toward Angel's desk. She threw something she had wrapped up in a small towel onto his desk. He opened it, it was a human foot.

"Your psycho isnt possessed." Max said to Angel. "She's insane."

"What?" Angel said standing.

"Shes not possessed, shes extremly violent and strong as hell. Shes one of Buffy's grand new ideas." She said and turned to leave the room.

"Whoa!" Angel called. "What?"

"She's a slayer." Max said her back still to Angel. "Find her, shes dangerous with that much power and that many bad memories."

"Buffy's what? How is she a slayer?" Angel asked her as she walked out of the office.

Max found herself on the street infront of Wolfram and Hart. She knew Dana was near she could feel the insane presence. She walked down the street and turned down a empty road where cars parked for the disgusting apartments abover her. Down in the end of the street she saw Dana, she was hunched over a large amount of snack foods.

Dana turned when she heard Max. It was obvious she knew Max wasnt just a passerby, she had black leather jacket on that went with her black pants and black combat boots. Dana took her place ready for a fight, Max didnt want to fight her she was obviously insane.

"I want to fight." Dana said glaring down at her.

"If thats what you want." Max said smiling.

Dana charged at her. Max shot her leg up taking Dana in the side of the face. Dana grabbed her leg and twisted it. Max took the initiative and flipped herself over keeping Dana from breaking her leg. Max landed on her feet behind Dana. Max realised that Dana had her where she wanted her, backed into a corner.

"Max!" She heard it but it was too late for Max.

The defening roar of Dana slamming a massive concrete block on her head drowned out everything else. The next thing Max knew she was waking up in an hospital her head pounding. She looked around, her clothes where no where in sight and the sun had gone down. There was no Angel or any AI team member.

She pushed herself out of the bed and pulled off all of the stupid wires. She looked out the window in her room and kicked it in then jumped out of it landing on her feet five stories down. She ran through the streets of LA, she ran up into the nearest Wal-Mart and grabbed a pair of jeans and a black t-shirt and a pair of boots. She was weaponless but she seemed to be a human torch so that didnt bother her.

Just as quickly as she had come she was gone again out of the double doors of the massive superstore. Her next stop was Wolfram and Hart. She took the elevator up instead of the stairs because the running thing was getting old. She leaned against the elevator door as it went up. The doors dinged open and she marched past Harmony and into Angel's office.

"How dare you?" She yelled at Angel. "Its bad enough you let me get killed in the first place then you go and put me in a hospital when... Ah you moron!"

"Calm down Max." Wesley said to her.

Wesley, Fred, Gunn and Lorne were in the room but another person was there, a shorter person in a suit with sort of long curly hair. She knew he was a watched just by looking at him. She turned back to Angel her anger boiling under the surface.

"Angel is not at fault for your death." Spike said from the back of the office.

"Shut up Spike. Like you helped you were off doing Harmony." She yelled.

"Max..." Fred said to her.

Max turned to Fred ready to unleash more anger but she couldnt. The sight of Fred made all of her emotions flip flops where tears where starting to form in her eyes.

"Shes hurting..." Max said looking down at the floor.

Angel crossed the room and put his arms around Max. She buried her face in his nice shirt and she began to cry her hands gripping the back of Angel's shirt. He brushed back her hair and kissed her forehead.

"Is she a slayer too?" Andrew asked.

"No... Shes pyrokinetic." Wesley said to Andrew.

"Really?" Andrew said excitedly. "Shes a firestarter?"

"She doesnt like to be called that." Gunn said nodding.

"Shes really strong too." Lorne added.

"So whats going on with them?" Andrew asked.

"They are in love," Fred said smiling. "They just dont know it."

"Sorry to burst your bubble but we got a little problem on our hands." Spike said to them.

"Spike." Fred snapped.

"Fine." Spike said turning and leaving.

"Do they ever like seperate girls? Like for example, two differnt ones?" Lorne asked them.

"No." They all answered in unison.

Max and Angel seperated after a few seconds a staring. They turned back to the group and began to talk about Dana, she was an obvious threat. Her mind didnt work the same as everyone elses.

"We know that she was abused, find out who did it." Angel said to Gunn and Wes. "Anything you can, if hes still alive or serving time or whatever."

"Ill find Spike." Max said turning to leave.

"Be careful." Angel said to her.

She left the office and the building. But Max didnt go to the house she didnt know where it was and chances where that she didnt go back there. Max went the only place she could think of, the docks. Angel's car pulled up behind her as she ran down the docks.

"I can smell him." Angel yelled to her.

Max stopped short as Angel went into the place where he smelled Spike. She couldnt do it, she couldnt go into the building and let them take Dana while she watched. She looked past Angels car as the rest of the tactical team came up behind his car. She looked at the doorway and ran through it. As if it were her own personal hell things started to come back to her. The life she had lived in Melany had been an evil one.

She had let herself believe she was normal as a child but she knew she wasnt, she bred in a home of evil but denied it to the world and even to herself. Thats when you know you are in deep, when you cant tell the differnce between reality and the lies. She heard a cry from below her and she knew it was Spikes.

Max ran to the basement to see Angel pin Dana against himself and force her towards the door. He yelled something and a dart zoomed past Max's ear and hit Dana in the chest.

Max walked out of the basement and back into the fresh air as Spike was wheeled out on a gurney. She stared at the sky. Lorne came up behind her and put his hand on her back.

"Its a fresh wound I know. But you need to come back to us." Lorne said to her. "The pain will stop. I know it will."

Max looked over to see a group of girls and Andrew around Angel. She smiled at Lorne and went to Angel. She stood next to him as the army of slayers stared them down.

"Shes stronger then most slayers." Angel said about Max.

"Is she stronger then 12 vampyr slayers?" He asked.

"Dont make me find out." Max said to Andrew.

"Ill just tell Buffy about this when we get back now wont I." Andrew said turning with the slayers and Dana on a gurney.

"Let him go. Hes a moron, see him take that one on. Mental problems and all, thats a beauty." Max said shaking her head.

"He cant handle her." Angel said softly.

"Shes too far gone."


End file.
